Lack of access to quality care is a real issue - An interview with Daniel Madero

Daniel Madero has 10+ years of experience in the reproductive space. He recently joined LEVY Health as VP Partnerships and is ready to take women's health to the next level. We asked Daniel why he joined LEVY Health.

How did you come to work in the women’s health industry specifically?

I started working at my dad’s fertility clinic while I was in college. During that time I became my friends birth-control pills “dealer” from pharma samples and had to learn about the different compositions of each type of pill to be able to get the right ones for them. That showed me how few resources we had access to about women’s reproductive health and how little both my female friends and I knew about menstrual cycles and the importance of hormone regulation! So in short I was born into it and ended up finding a passion for it by chance.

What opportunities or challenges do you see in the female healthcare space that you are excited to tackle or address?

The Dobbs decision poses a threat to the reproductive rights of women all over the US and the lack of access to quality care is a real issue we need to address and a gap we have to breach. I see an opportunity to take a stance and help solve for access to care at the right time wherever they are! (I think we can help with that at LEVY). It is also a very tumultuous time in the start-up space (the economy tanking and fear rising from the investor side) so we might see a decrease in funding for those companies in the space as well as funding for necessary research.

It’s crazy to realize how little focus is on research for 50% of the population.

I see a growing need for people to find care when they need it, that comes from access to the right doctors and accurate testing to get an accurate diagnosis if needed. I also see a rising tide of interest in endocrine health (hormones) and companies out there putting a focus on that. The role hormones play in general well-being is mind-blowing.

What aspects of endocrine health or endocrine disorders particularly interest you or inspire you to work in this field?

I think three things make this very real for me:

Having been in the assisted reproduction space for 10+ years has shown me a side of this space in extremis. We are talking about people that get to their last resource trying to have a baby. And all techniques to get there rely on hormones and manipulating ovulation and menstrual cycles (from eggs to linings).

A lot of those conditions end up being endocrine and throughout my years in the space I saw how difficult it was for women to get an accurate diagnosis, and I know of nothing out there today that makes it easier - until I learned about LEVY

I’m at an age where I have seen a lot of my friends go through challenges trying to conceive. Of those, some will come to me asking for help or advice, and this is for a lack of resources - I can only give direction at best. I also see women in my life that are getting close to menopause and that is a completely different stage and challenge, also regulated by hormones! So, it is something that I have come across at different stages in my life and I‘m convinced that getting women access to the right resources, knowledge, accurate testing, and the right type of care will have a positive impact on whatever stage of their “endocrine journey” they are in.

How did you first learn about LEVY Health and what convinced you to join?

Silvia and Caroline on both accounts, haha. But really, I learned about them in February 2022 at the Women's Health Innovation Summit. There I talked to them and loved the solution they were building and joined as an advisor shortly after. Since, I’ve seen the growth and how quickly they adapted the product for the US. I saw firsthand the integrity of the team and how fast they work without sacrificing quality at any point.

I joined because I believe that we have a product unlike any out there.

We can accurately diagnose a woman with endocrine conditions at any stage of her life. And more importantly, we can do it fast while getting them the right type of care at the right time.

How do you hope to make a difference in the lives of women with endocrine disorders through your work at LEVY Health?

I hope to be able to put our product in the right hands to reach as many women as possible. I believe we can increase access to care at the right time for any woman that needs it.